The Noble Quest
by Clockwork Warp
Summary: An Autobot recruit is unwillingly drafted into a quest to find a series of powerful artifacts and defeat a terrible evil. He joins up with four others in the quest, yet something doesn't seem right about their leader.
1. The Empty Vault

A day in the Axiom Nexus could be chaotic, to say the least. Lowtechs and Transtechs of all varieties bustled about their daily lives, either running their run-down markets, harassing other travellers for any remaining money they had, or closely guarding secrets that should never, ever, ever be spoken. Today, however, chaos ran through the streets of the multidimensional hub more than ever.

The sound of an explosion, commonplace to many of the inhabitants of the city, rocked Axiom Nexus. Those who looked for the source of the blast, saw it was coming from the top of one of the many towers that pierced the two-sunned sky of this iteration of Cybertron. A streak of light seemed to drop from the source of the explosion and run down the side of the tower. It was closely followed by two more streaks. The sounds of laser fire echoed over the city.

A rush of wind whipped over the heads of the denizens of Axiom Nexus as a silver jet zipped over their heads, closely followed by two white flyers, which were firing on the jet. The jet easily navigated the airways of Axiom Nexus, heading for the city borders. The jet was exceedingly quick, managing to outmaneuver its pursuers and create some well-needed distance. As it pressed ahead, the air in front of it began to crackle with energy.

* * *

><p><strong>"Warning. Unauthorised transport in progress."<strong> The smooth voice of a computer spoke over the blaring of a loud alarm. **"Repeat. Unauthorised transport in progress."** Transtechs dashed through the hallway, spurred into action by the alarm. In a control room at the top of a tower, a pair of doors slid open and Commander Cheetor strode inside. His luminous violet optics scanned over the several technicians and controllers working at their computer consoles.

"Report." he said briskly.

"Unauthorised transport, sir." One of the controllers replied, not taking his optics off the computer.

"Yeah, I heard." Cheetor sighed. "What's the transport destination?"

"Unknown, sir. We can't pinpoint the cluster its taking the Lowtech to." Another controller replied.

"Shut it down." Cheetor ordered. The controllers went to work at their consoles.

"It's not working, sir." A controller said after a minute. "There's some kind of interference with the transport."

Cheetor hissed angrily. "The Lowtech's getting away! Disrupt the transport!"

**"Commander Cheetor!"** A harsh-sounding, raspy voice came over the intercom. Cheetor looked up to the ceiling and gave a low growl that went unheard by the controllers. He recognised that voice. It had been the bane of his existence ever since he became the chief of security administration. **"There has been a break-in at the confiscation vaults. I need you over here now."**

"At once, High Commander Megatron." Cheetor replied, barely containing his anger. He turned and stalked out of the control room. Deep in his spark, he knew that he was, once again, going to get chewed out over this. As he left, the controllers worked at their consoles, making every effort they could to stop the Lowtech jet from getting away.

* * *

><p>The crackling in the air grew stronger, sending electricity surging through the sky. As the jet flew closer to the source of the crackling, the sky seemed to split in two, and in the middle was a howling void, filled with blue energy. The jet's pursuers must have interpreted this new sight as a threat, because they increased their firepower. Their training seemed to pay off, as some of their shots actually made contact with the jet, which shuddered in midair, its frame riddled with laser burns, yet it kept on course.<p>

The two flyers pressed forward, closing on their target. Before they could even lock onto their target, the jet disappeared through the crack in the sky, and the crack closed after it. The flyers pulled themselves to a stop in midair, changing into slim-looking, streamlined robots. They looked around, their burning red visors scanning the skyline of Axiom Nexus for any sign of their quarry. There was nothing in sight. One of the robots touched a hand to the side of their head and gestured to his companion. The two changed shape again and headed for the exploded tower.

* * *

><p>The slender frame of Cheetor contrasted the overtly bulky Megatron as they stood inside the destroyed vault. Fire suppression teams had been called in to deal with the blazes, and now the security forces had been called in to investigate the area. Several Transtechs were busy looking around the vault, which had been cleanly blown open, according to the two standing guard over it.<p>

"Do we know what was stolen, yet?" Cheetor asked his superior, who turned to look at him with steely red optics. The security chief could tell they were full of rage, as always.

"No." Megatron spoke slowly and calmly. "The perpetrator travelled far into this vault to steal his prize. Shockwave is investigating deeper inside."

Cheetor felt himself shiver. Even though the Transtechs didn't partake in the war that so many Lowtechs were caught up in, and they were all on the same side, Cheetor never felt comfortable around Shockwave. It wasn't that he distrusted Military Intelligence, but Shockwave just gave off an aura of doubt and secrecy that never sat well with him.

"Commanders." Shockwave's sinister voice shocked Cheetor. He tried to keep a straight face as the spider-like Military Intelligence chief crossed the vault and stood before them. "If you will come with me, I will show you the lengths our thief went to."

Megatron and Cheetor glanced at each other, then followed Shockwave into the vault. Cheetor recognised it immediately as Vault 5, where all the items of significant power were locked away. The rules for dimension-hopping through Axiom Nexus forbode the carrying of items deemed powerful or important, such as a Matrix of Leadership. Any that did make their way to the hub were locked away in Vault 5. He had never been inside the vault, but had been curious about the contents on more than one occasion.

Further into the vault the trio went, examining the numbered lockers that lined the walls. The whole vault seemed to hum with power. They stopped when they reached a large metal door, which opened with the touch of Shockwave's hand. Cheetor almost gasped in surprise as he looked forward. There stood a door, identical to the one they had just passed through. The only difference was a hole had been blasted through it.

"How is this possible?" Megatron asked, gazing at the hole.

"We suspect the thief had access to Matter Compression Charges." Shockwave said bluntly, scuttling through the hole. As he and Megatron followed, Cheetor tensed up. Matter Compression Charges were dangerous weapons. They created miniature singularities which consumed anything they came into contact with. Even the Transtechs had never considered using them. They were highly unstable at best.

As he clambered through the hole, he looked around. He could tell that he was in the deepest, most restricted part of the vault. He watched as Shockwave touched a panel on the wall, which slid out. He peered into the hidden space. It was empty.

"What used to be here?" he asked, noting the serial number imprinted on the base of the compartment: 6279-783.

"Something powerful." Shockwave replied. It seemed to be the reply he was satisfied with, because he didn't care to elaborate.

* * *

><p>In a universe designated as Viron 385.20 Theta, a tear opened up in the sky, and the silver jet flew out. It desperately tried to maintain being airborne, but couldn't, and fell to the ground, where a plume of soil, grass, and one or two heralded its crashing. It groaned in pain as it shifted to robot mode, clutching an ornately decorated cube. He didn't move, knowing it would cause him pain if he did.<p>

He heard movement somewhere off to his left, and then the sounds of metal feet on soil. He felt a hand on his shoulder, and he was forcibly turned around. He stared into the eyes of the red robot that had found him, seeing only concern.

"Don't worry, Warcry. We're going to get you repaired up." His rescuer smiled at him. "You'll be okay." The smile soon vanished when he saw the full extent of the damage. Warcry was leaking energon all over his crash site, and seemed that a laser blast had pierced a spot close to his spark.

"No..." Warcry managed to croak out. "I'm...I'm done for, Block...Blockbuster. Get this...to...her..." he held up the cube with a shaky hand and dropped it at his companion's side. "...there must be...five..." He would have said more, but his colours had faded.

Blockbuster knelt by Warcry's side for a moment, his head hanging and his optics closed. When he opened them, he took hold of the cube and stood up, turning away from his friend's body and running into the woodland. As he changed into his preferred alt mode of a jeep, he darted nimbly between trees. His performance was a little more sluggish than usual, he noted, due to lowered levels of energon in his system. He had left some of his innermost energon in a phial at the place where Warcry lay.

* * *

><p>He soon came upon a clearing, where three other Transformers awaited him. The smallest of the trio was a bright orange with tiny horns on his head and shoulders that looked like the front of a car. The second had black helicopter blades jutting out from behind his back, which blended in well with the dark blue of his body. The third member of the waiting party was the one Blockbuster had been waiting to see. She stood in front of the other two, her arms folded over her grill-like torso. She kept her warm, blue optics on Blockbuster all the time.<p>

"Blockbuster!" she said, smiling, as Blockbuster changed form again. "Where's Warcry?"

"He, um..." Blockbuster clenched his free fist before continuing. "He didn't make it."

The smile vanished from their leader's face as she heard Blockbuster speak. She turned her head away from them, trying to calm herself down. After a moment, she turned to face Blockbuster, her face stoic. "We'll bury him later. Did he retrieve it?"

"Yes, he did." Blockbuster held out the cube, which had begun to glow a vibrant violet colour.

She took it from him and gazed at it, the light emanating from the object reflecting off her face. She was eternally thankful to Warcry for bringing this to her. It meant she was one step closer to achieving her goals.

* * *

><p>In the light of the morning, three more phials of innermost energon rested on a mound of earth, under which the form of Warcry lay. The four Transformers had long since disappeared, each of them assuming their alt modes-an orange sports car, a helicopter, a jeep and an indigo semi-truck-and were travelling down a woodland road.<p>

"Where next?" the sports car asked, after a few minutes of silence.

"We need to find another, Gecko." The indigo semi replied. "The prophecy says there must be five."

"Where are we going to find another willing to listen to us?" Gecko pressed. "I guarantee they'll be thinking of the war first."

"I'll think of something." The semi said, pressing ahead of the others and taking the lead. "I have a feeling they'll listen to me."


	2. Field of Fire

**Universe Primax 509.28 Epsilon**

The sun was blotted out by the sheer number of Decepticons taking flight. It seemed that for every Autobot that stayed behind, there were 100 Decepticons ready to dismantle them, which wasn't good news. All the Autobots could do was run and hope that they weren't followed. The bravest-or most foolish-Autobots actually dared to fight back, using guerrilla tactics to disrupt the day-to-day routine of Cybertron and causing havoc for the Decepticons, and in the Decepticon-occupied city of Stanix, there was only one Autobot who had the ball bearings to do such things. His name was Ripcord, and he was the commander of an Autobot squad that specialised in such tactics.

Ripcord's day started off badly. He was awoken from recharging by the voice of Flintlock, one of the soldiers under his command.

"What is it, Flintlock?" Ripcord half-coughed. Then again, his voice had become so gravelly due to constant yelling that it was hard to tell when he was coughing.

"There's a messenger outside, sir. He's asking for you." Flintlock spoke in a well-practiced monotone, breaking it only to emphasise "you".

"Who in their right processor would use a messenger?" Ripcord grunted, stalking past Flintlock and into a large, round room filled with unmarked grey crates. "We have computers, don't we?" He looked around for any sign of a messenger, but all he saw were the bots that made up his squad. "Where is the messenger, anyway?"

"I'll, um, I'll go and fetch him, sir." Flintlock hurried past Ripcord and disappeared through another door, returning with a bright green robot who was looking around the room, apparently interested. As the messenger approached, Ripcord noticed flecks of gold interspersed around the green. Two sets of blue optics met as Ripcord gazed intently at the messengers head, as if he was about to rip it off.

"So you're this messenger, correct?" Ripcord stared at the mech, who was at least a head shorter than he was.

"Yes, sir. I am." The messenger nodded and gave Ripcord a smile, or the closest thing to a smile, given that he didn't have a visible mouth, which was just a little bit unsettling to the squad commander. Perhaps he had just gotten used to seeing scowls and war faces all the time.

"So, what message have you brought?" he asked, folding his arms.

The messenger mech produced a small metal disc from a compartment in his arm and held it out to Ripcord. "It's from...Torch, I think his name was."

Ripcord's optics widened. Why would Torch send him something through a messenger when they saw each other almost every day? In fact, he had sent Torch on a mission not just a solar cycle ago.

He took the disc from the messenger and pressed his thumb to the top of it. It began to glow bright blue, and the image of a head appeared, hovering over the disc. It looked distressed, as if it had committed some great wrong. Even though it was tinted blue, Ripcord recognised it as Torch.

"Commander Ripcord, I'm sorry." Torch's head said, its voice weighing heavily with guilt. "The mission's failed. My cover's been blown. If this gets to you, they've probably captured me and are rummaging through my processor. They may already know where the base is. I'm sending this to you via messenger, so it won't get intercepted through the net. If y..."

Torch's panicked voice was drowned out by the sound of rumbling overhead. It was too powerful to be cargo hauling. Ripcord frowned as he realised what was happening: The Decepticons were bombing the ground above their base.

"Battle stations, everyone, NOW!" Ripcord bellowed, alerting all the other Autobots. "Get all available weapons in this room! We're not going down without a fight!"

"Yes, sir!" the other Autobots responded as they hurried through the base, opening boxes and unpacking all different kinds of weapons.

Ripcord turned to face the messenger. "Your name, messenger?"

"Uh, Lime, sir." The messenger replied.

_What kind of a name is Lime?_ Ripcord thought. "You any good with a gun, Lime?"

"Not to my knowledge, sir." Lime shook his head.

"Great." Ripcord muttered. "Then stay well back. At the first chance you get, get out of here. Understood?"

Lime nodded. "Yes, sir."

"Good." Ripcord strode over to a box and picked up the biggest gun he could find. "Alright, Autobots, get ready to light the sky on fire!"

The other Autobots cheered in agreement and pointed their weapons at the ceiling as it was blown open and Decepticons began pouring in. Energy weapons were discharged with frightening rapidity as Autobot and Decepticon met in battle. Lime stood well back, his optics darting around the room, observing the sudden intrustion of chaos. The Autobots put up a good fight, but even they seemed to know it was in vain. A few of them dropped their weapons as they fell to the ground, their chassis' riddled with plasma burns or exposed wires. Their colours faded, and their bodies were unceremoniously pushed aside to make room for more Decepticons. The Autobots still standing were doing as much as they could at the encouragement of Ripcord to halt the Decepticons' progress. Ripcord had picked up two of the biggest guns Lime had ever seen and, one in each hand, gunned down Decepticons with a ferocity Lime had never seen before. He could hear the commander's battle cry of "RAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!" over the cacophony of weapons fire.

To Lime's relief, at least the Decepticons were focusing their efforts on the Autobots that were shooting at them.

Then one of them turned to face Lime, and sneered. Lime gulped, and stepped backwards. The Decepticon followed him, giving him a twisted smile and withdrawing a blade from his back. Lime's back hit the wall, and he knew he had nowhere else to run. He closed his optics, awaiting the death he knew would come.

As the battle raged, an egg-like object was dropped through the open hole in the ceiling. No-one noticed it until it was too late, and by then, it had already exploded, indiscriminately extinguishing every spark in the chamber.

* * *

><p>An after-battle observation mission sent out by the Decepticons confirmed what they had expected. A high-yield explosive charge had been dropped into the Autobots' base. Several mnemosurgeons had been sent to extract information from the processors of the dead Autobots. They saw the charge detonate, and the onslaught of Decepticons battle fiercely. They even recovered the burned remains of Torch's message to Ripcord.<p>

Yet there was one anomaly in the mnemosurgeons' reports. After looking into the processor of Ripcord, they had noted the existence of a messenger known as "Lime". As well as questioning what self-respecting mech would choose to be identified as "Lime", they had been unable to find anything in the base that indicated he had been there when the charge had exploded. They had, however, extracted a memory from one of the Decepticons present. The memory showed the Decepticon advancing on an Autobot which was assumed to be "Lime", but as the soldier had prepared the killing blow, "Lime" had just vanished from sight.


	3. Improbable Truths

Lime had shut his eyes, waiting for his inevitable demise by the blade of a Decepticon. His mind had raced. He hadn't been an Autobot that long. It was too early in his career for him to die. He hadn't even been granted the opportunity to rise through the ranks. Yet, there he was, an open target for the Decepticon. Death, for him, was certain. At that moment, Lime was prepared to accept his death.

So why, in the name of Primus, was he lying down on a slab of polished black metal, in an unfamiliar room?

He sat up slowly, taking in every detail of the room. Bars of blue light were compressed into the ceiling, giving the room an alien feeling. On his left, 5 more metal slabs, devoid of occupants, stood. The sides of the slabs blinked and flashed different coloured lights, mesmerising Lime for a second. The Autobot swiveled around and placed his feet on the ground. looking around, he noticed a part of the room that was cut off from the rest of it. Lime approached it with apprehension, thinking it was some kind of secret laboratory. He hoped he wasn't the unfortunate guinea pig.

As it turned out, the cut-off part of the room was a work station, with a computer console. Lime couldn't help himself. He tapped the console once, and a display popped up. The interface was practically alien to Lime. He couldn't understand any of the symbols that he assumed were letters and words. He pressed his face closer to the console, attempting to decipher the unknown language.

He became so engrossed in attempting to understand the language, he didn't realise that a plasma cannon was aimed directly at the back of his head.

"That console is classified." said a sharp, soldier-like voice. "Step away from it."

Lime nearly jumped out of his chassis. He didn't move for fear of having his head blown away.

"I said move, mech." The voice said again. Lime turned and found himself staring into the begoggled face of a dark blue mech. Lime gave him a quick look-over. This one was built for the military. He had that kind of tough exterior that reminded him of...Ripcord. Was he okay? The last Lime saw of him was his stand against the Decepticons.

"Come with me." the mech gestured out the door, as if he were indicating for Lime to go first. Lime seemed to catch on, because he headed for the door, and the other mech followed soon afterwards. The two walked down a well-lit corridor. More light bars lined the walls, illuminating every surface and making the end of the mech's plasma cannon seem just that more threatening.

Lime coughed tentatively. "Can I ask where I am?"

"You can ask." The mech replied plainly. "Whether or not I can answer is another thing."

"Oh, okay." Lime remained quiet until they reached a single door at the end of the corridor. The mech pressed his thumb against a panel, and stepped back, as if he were waiting.

After a few seconds, Lime asked "So where are we?"

"On a ship, in a corridor, waiting for an elevator." The mech said. "Our captain can give you better answers."

"Alright." Lime shrugged. At that moment, the elevator door slid open.

"Inside." Lime found himself being forced in by the end of his companion's plasma cannon. He stepped inside the cylindrical chamber, and the mech followed. The door closed, and he felt the chamber rumble a little as they ascended the ship. The two didn't talk at all. Both kept their gaze forward, though Lime was sure he felt the other mech glance at him once or twice. He twiddled his thumbs, having nothing better to do.

The elevator slowly ground to a halt, and the door slid open.

"After you." the mech said. Lime, given that he was unarmed, was hardly in a position to disagree, so he complied and went first.

He was standing off to the side of what appeared to be the bridge. Just like all the other sections of the ship he had seen, it was very well lit. Consoles lined the rear wall, while a stretch of what Lime assumed was glass revealed the empty path ahead. Four little circular alcoves seemed to be built into the ground, each one ringed with computer consoles. Two of the alcoves were occupied by an orange mech and another red mech, both of which were looking intently at consoles. They all surrounded a large black chair, which was being occupied by a robot with obviously large shoulders.

The chair swiveled around, revealing a fembot sitting in it. Lime felt blue optics looking him up and down. There was something about the appearance of the fembot that reminded him of the Autobot leader, Optimus Prime. Maybe it was the window-y and grill-like torso, or the shape of the head. The faceplate was gone, however, and Lime found himself looking at a calm, smiling face.

"Glad you're awake, Lime." she said, still smiling.

Lime raised a mechanical eyebrow. "How...how do you know my name?"

"We did a bit of research on who you are." The fembot replied. "We're the ones who rescued you."

"You are?"

"Indeed. We're calling on you to help us in our quest."

Lime tilted his head. "What quest is this?"

"I will explain everything to you." the fembot said. "My name is Diana Prime, wife of Optimus Prime and Queen of Cybertron."

There was far too much confusing information for Lime in that one sentence. He had never heard of a Diana Prime in his entire life. When he was first training as an Autobot, he had met a historian who could recite every Prime recorded up to Optimus. Lime only remembered because it had become a mantra for that Cybertronian. He recited it every morning, and Lime was always in earshot. Diana had never come up.

Speaking of Optimus Prime, Lime wasn't aware that Optimus had taken a spark-mate. As a messenger, he travelled between several parts of Cybertron, including their headquarters in Iacon. He would have heard if it was the case. He had even carried a message to Optimus once. To stand in the presence of such an inspiring Autobot was amazing. He was almost certain he hadn't taken a spark-mate.

His next thought he verbalised. "Queen of Cybertron? But...isn't there a Council?"

"Not on my Cybertron." Diana replied. "Optimus is the King and I am the Queen." She peered into Lime's optics, as if she were scanning his mind.

"You doubt my identity." she said after a few moments.

"What makes you say that?"

"I can read your processor. I'm a psychic robot." Diana said. "There's a file in our computers on me. It's quite comprehensive. Take a look if you don't believe me."

"Alright." Lime turned to one of the computers lining the wall and said "Computer, bring up the file on Diana Prime."

Sure enough, an image of Diana's head appeared, along with many, many, many lines of Cybertronian text. The computer began to verbalise the text for Lime's convenience.

"Diana Prime hails from universal stream Aurex 604.01 Kappa. Prior to the breakout of the Cybertronian civil war, she was a travelling data merchant with strong ties to the ruling body of Cybertron. She was married to Optimus Prime following the initial aggressive action of the Decepticon separatists. She became involved with the leadership of the Autobots, and discovered her abilities as a reincarnation of the long-lost Eriolite race of Transformers. She has since been named in a prophecy made by Vector Sigma as one who will save Cybertron from an unknown form of evil."

Once the computer had finished, Lime turned to Diana and could only say one word.

"WHAT?!"

"It is difficult for some to accept," Diana nodded. "but everything in that file is true."

"I have to sit down." Lime put a hand to his head and he shut off his optics. This was a lot to take in. Where did he begin? Eriolites, prophecies, and data merchants bounced back and forth in his processor. He felt himself being led to what he hoped was a chair. Moments later, he found his hopes to be true, and leaned back in his new seat.

"You're right. It is difficult for me to accept." Lime spoke after a moment. "But I guess I'll have to get used to it." He reactivated his optics. "Is this why you brought me here? To join in your quest to defeat the evil?"

"Yes." he heard Diana's voice off to the side. "Will you help us?"

Lime slowly nodded. "Yes. Yes, I'll help."


	4. Initiation

Once he had fully recovered, Lime was taken to a different room. This one seemed a bit more...ancient than the other rooms he had seen. Fabric banners seemed to fall from the ceiling, decorating the walls with deep red and gold. Upon the banners was written something that Lime couldn't read. He was told by Diana that the writing was in Ancient Cybertronian, and that his not-understanding of it wasn't something to be ashamed of. Five thin metal strands rose up from the ground, four of which were emitting bright orange lights from their tops. Diana and the three others took their places on a platform that was slightly elevated from the rest of the chamber.

"You are the one known as Lime, correct?" Diana asked of him. Her tone had changed to something that sounded almost regal.

"I am." Lime replied, nodding his head.

"Lime of Cybertron, do you, this day, swear to aid in the quest to destroy the great evil that threatens all life?"

There it was. A question that Lime had answered previously. Weren't they satisfied with his previous answer?

"I will." he said after a moment.

"May our fellow questers sound their approval of Lime of Cybertron." Diana turned to address the others.

"Gecko of Cybertron welcomes the new quester." the orange mech said aloud, giving Lime a subtle wink.

"Blockbuster of Cybertron welcomes this new quester." the bright red mech stood next to Gecko affirmed.

"Marksman of Cybertron welcomes this new quester." The mech who had accosted Lime in the medical bay spoke.

"We are affirmed." Diana nodded solemnly. "Stand forth, Lime, and gaze upon my right as chosen one." She took the windows that comprised her upper torso and opened them outwards. Lime found himself blinded by a bright flash of light. The brightness soon faded, and Lime found himself staring into a spherical glowing crystal, with two wide handles on opposite ends. It was giving out a bright gold light that filled the room, casting its light on everyone in the room, and making those it fell upon seem more powerful. Diana Prime did indeed feel like a powerful leader of the Autobots. Blockbuster seemed like he could lift the entire room with them still inside. Gecko turned into a machine of streamlined precision, built for speed, and Marksman became even more deadly.

"Behold the Matrix of Virtue." Diana said solemnly. "Passed down to me by Alpha Trion himself, marking me as the chosen one and granting me great power."

_It obviously didn't give you a sense of modesty._ Lime thought.

"May this Matrix of Virtue light the fifth pillar!"

As she spoke, a thin strand of light erupted from the Matrix and travelled to the fifth pillar, where it settled, glowing brightly for all to see.

"It is done. Lime is now our fifth quester!" Diana spoke with grandeur. "May he serve as my loyal follower until I defeat...I mean, until we defeat the great evil! Hail, Lime!"

"Hail, Lime!" The others echoed. Lime rose to his feet.

"So, what happens now?" he asked.

"Well, do you know anything about fixing up damaged 'bots?" Blockbuster asked.

"A little." Lime replied. "I can fix up basic stuff, but nothing too complicated."

"That'll have to do." Blockbuster shrugged. "We need a medic. The last bot we knew who could fix us up, well..."

"...well?" Lime pressed him to continue.

"Ah, you'll find out." Blockbuster grinned. "In the meantime, how about some oil?"

* * *

><p>"I've looked through the documents the vaults provided." Shockwave skittered into Megatron's office, the High Commander sitting at a work desk. "The artifact in question was placed in the vault over 4000 years ago."<p>

"That's very interesting," Megatron didn't even try to keep the irritation out of his voice "but I need to know who the original custodian of it was."

Shockwave took a step back, knowing never to be around the High Commander when he was angry.

"A Lowtech called Torque. He has taken up residence in the lower levels of the city. I sent an agent to bring him to me."

"Make sure he talks." Megatron hissed. "We need to know exactly what the artifact was and why he was carrying it."

"At once, my..." Shockwave cut himself off as he lifted a spindly finger to the side of his mono-ocular head.

"Understood." he said after a moment, lowering his hand. "We have traced the destination point of the Lowtech who stole the artifact."

Megatron thumped a powerful-looking hand on the desk, a sense of triumph evident in his expression.

"Excellent." he said, standing and heading for the door. "We'll soon have the artifact back in our possession. Where did they go?"

"Universe designation Viron 385.20 Theta." Shockwave replied. "With your permission, I'll have a recovery team dispatched instantly."

"I'll see to it." Megatron replied. "In the meantime, find Torque, and find out everything he knows about this artifact."

"At once, High Commander." Shockwave turned and scuttled out of the office, the door swishing closed behind him. Torque was very important in this plot. He knew what the artifact was, why he brought it to the Axiom Nexus of all places, and, perhaps most important of all, how powerful it was. If it was buried in one of the deepest vaults in the Nexus, it must be quite the powerhouse. Maybe powerful enough to restore his old body. This new one was a fair approximation of his former glory, but it lacked many of the modifications he had made to himself. He certainly wasn't happy about not being able to exact delicate vengeance on Immorticon, but such was life.

* * *

><p>The dark blue Lowtech known as Torque struggled against the bindings that strapped him to the cold steel table. He tried desperately to stand up as Shockwave's single piercing eye gazed at his form.<p>

"You're surprisingly well assembled." Shockwave observed. "For a Lowtech, I mean."

"Why have you brought me here?" the Cybertronian croaked huskily as he tried to lift his arms.

"When you first arrived, we confiscated something from you." Shockwave continued. "What was it?"

Torque snorted indignantly. "Can't you just check vault records?"

Shockwave couldn't show any emotion, but if he could, he would be angry and irritated at this Lowtech's impertinent attitude to a superior being. "The vault records regarding the object were wiped by an intruder who stole it."

Torque's optics widened in fear. "Someone took it?"

"Does that trouble you?" Shockwave tilted his head curiously.

"Yes!" Torque yelled in the Transtech's face. "That artifact is dangerous! I let you take it from me because I thought you could protect it! If it's gone, the entire multiverse is in danger!"

"What sort of danger?"

Torque turned away from Shockwave. "It is a beast. A demon the likes of which the worlds have never seen. If it is allowed to roam free, everything will die, Transtech and Lowtech alike! Can you comprehend that?!"

Shockwave nodded calmly. "I comprehend what you tell me." He reached over to a tray of tools and picked up a mnemosurgery tool. "And I will eventually comprehend everything you know."

"You don't have to cut me open!" Torque protested. "I can tell you everything I know!"

"This is a far more efficient method." Shockwave said dismissively as he aimed the tool directly at Torque's head.


End file.
